Placard holding display assembly

ABSTRACT

A display assembly which includes two frames, one telescoped inside the other. An upper frame holds a display placard and can be adjustably raised and lowered to accommodate display placards of various sizes. The display placard is held in a fixture rotatably mounted on the upper frame and is free to swing, thereby reducing resistance to wind and minimizing the vulnerability of the display assembly to wind damage. A mounting assembly is arranged to permit the display assembly to be removably mounted onto a support structure, such as atop a gas pump.

United States Patent [191 Finger I 1 PLACARD HOLDING DISPLAY ASSEMBLY [75] Inventor: Otto R. Finger, Mequon, Wis.

[73] Assignee: Display Corporation International,

Milwaukee, Wis.

22 Filed: Dec. 18,1970

211 App1.No.: 99,450

[52] US. Cl ..40/125 I-I, 40/155 [51] Int. Cl ..G09f 7/22 [58] Field of Search ..40/125 H, 125 F, 129,125,

40/129 C, 155; 248/226 R, 226 D, 201, 204;

[56] References Cited I UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,792,948 2/1931 Weil ..40/155 3,287,840 11/1966 Keats ..40/145 X 2,834,506 5/1958 Schaefer..... 248/226 X 3,392,467 7/1968 Hawes ..40/129 C 1,821,609 9/1931 Baker..... 248/201 X 3,119,588 l/l964 Keats ..40/145 2,590,506 3/1952 Carter ..40/125 W 2,173,197 9/1939 Brown ..40/319 2,633,381 3/1953 Francesco ..248/226 X 1 March 6, 1973 2,817,409 12/1957 Cullmann ..148/226 D X FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 627,192 8/1949 Great Britain ..40/125 I-l 1,289,870 2/1962 France ..40/125 I-l Primary Examiner-Robert W. Michell Assistant Examiner-Richard Carter Attorney-John W. Michael, Gerrit D. Foster, Bayard H. Michael, Paul R. Puerner, Joseph A. Gemignani, Robert E. Clemency, Andrew 0. Riteris, Glenn A. Buse and Spencer B. Michael [57] ABSTRACT A display assembly which includes two frames, one telescoped inside the other. An upper frame holds a display placard and can be adjustably raised and lowered to accommodate display placards of various sizes. The display placard is held in a fixture rotatably mounted on the upper frame and is free to swing, thereby reducing resistance to wind and minimizing the vulnerability of the display assembly to wind damage. A mounting assembly is arranged to permit the display assembly to be removably mounted onto a support structure, such as atop a gas pump.

7 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures PLACARD HOLDING DISPLAY ASSEMBLY BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a display assembly, and more particularly, to a display assembly holding removable display placards and having the capability of being removably mounted onto other existing structures, such as atop a gas pump.

Display assemblies for holding removable display placards are widely used for point-of-purchase advertising. Such assemblies are frequently used outdoors, such as by service stations to advertise gasoline prices, new products etc., and therefore are subjected to the prevailing wind conditions. The generally vertical display placard offers considerable wind resistance making the assembly vulnerable to damage during high winds, i.e., being bent completely over or at least badly distorted.

As the advertising is changed, it may be advantageous to change the size of the display placard. Hence, a desirable feature for such a display assembly is the capability for adjustment to accommodate display placards of different sizes. In order to improve the impact of the advertising, the display assembly is frequently mounted onto an existing structure located where the buyer is more apt to observe it, such as atop a gas pump, a waste disposal container, a strategically located oil drum, etc. When so used, it is desirable for the mounting mechanism to be fully removable without damage to the base structure, be easy to install and remove, and yet provide a sturdy connection to the base structure.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of this invention is to provide a simple, inexpensive display assembly for holding removable display placards which has the capability of being easily mounted onto and removed from a base structure and adjustable to accommodate display placards of different sizes.

Another object of this invention is to provide such a display assembly having a minimum resistance to wind.

The display assembly of this invention includes an inverted U-shaped upper frame for holding a display placard and in telescopic relationship with a U-shaped lower frame. The upper frame can be adjustably raised and lowered to accommodate display placards of various sizes, with a locking means being provided, to hold the upper frame in a desired position. The display placard holding fixture is pivotably attached to the upper frame so that the placard is free to swing thereby minimizing resistance to wind. The display assembly is further provided with a mounting assembly which includes an angle bracket and mounting plate arranged so that the display assembly can be mounted to a support structure, such as atop a gas pump.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front elevation view of a display assembly embodying this invention shown mounted atop a gas pump.

FIG. 2 is a side elevation view of the display assembly of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary, cross section view taken along the plane designated 3--3 in FIG. 1 showing the installation of the display placard into the holding fixture.

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary, cross section view taken along the plane designated 4-4 in FIG. 1 showing the upper frame in a locked position within the lower frame.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring to the drawings, a display assembly embodying this invention, designated generally by reference numeral 10, includes an inverted U-shaped upper frame 12, a complementary U-shaped lower frame 14, a removable display placard 16 mounted in fixture 18 which is swingably attached to upper frame 12, and a pair of oppositely disposed mounting assemblies 20 attached to lower frame 14.

Upper frame 12 includes a horizontal cross member 22 and a pair of downwardly extending vertical legs 24. Lower frame 14 includes a horizontal cross member 26 and a pair of hollow upwardly extending vertical'legs 28 configured to allow legs 24 to telescope inside thereof. Although the drawings show upper frame 12 telescoping inside lower frame 14, it should be appreciated that the arrangement could be reversed with the lower frame telescoping inside the upper frame and other relatively movable arrangements can be provided. In FIG. 1, upper frame 12 is shown in the lowered position by solid lines with the raised or expanded position being shown by dashed lines.

Locking means 30 are employed to lock legs 24 and 28 against relative movement in a desired position as upper frame 12 is raised or lowered. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, legs 24 of upper frame 12 are provided with a plurality of oppositely disposed apertures 32 and legs 28 of lower frame 14 arealso provided with apair of oppositely disposed apertures 34. Apertures 34 are located to be aligned with apertures 32 as upper frame 12 is raised or lowered. As shown in FIG. 4, a bolt 36 extends through apertures 32 and 34 and carries a nut 38. It should be appreciated that locking means 30 can be any conventional releasable means, such as a pin or the like. Also, a spring-loaded pin could be mounted in each leg 24 to be urged into apertures in legs 28 to lock the upper frame into position, in which case a plurality of apertures are provided in each of legs 28 along its longitudinal axis corresponding to the different positions. When this arrangement is used, the position of the upper frame is changed by depressing the springloaded pins out of engagement with apertures in legs 28 and raising or lowering the upper frame until it is in the desired position. In that position, the pins are aligned with and are urged into another pair of aperturesin legs 24 by the springsto lock the legs in the desired position.

Display assembly Illis' secured to another structure, such as atop a gas pump 40, by mounting assembly 20 which includes angle bracket 42 connected to lower frame and mounting plate 44pivotably attached to the angle bracket 42. A copending application, now abandoned, Ser. No. 96,914, relating to a different display assembly, which was filed on Dec. 10, 1970 in the name of O. R. Finger and assigned to the assignee of the present application, discloses a similar mountingassembly. As shown in FIG. 1, angle bracket 42 is in the form of anacute angle so that mounting plate 44 is in compressive engagement with the side of gas pump 40. The surface of mounting plate 44 is provided with a strip 46 of contact adhesive material to minimize slippage. By being pivotably mounted to angle brackets 42, mounting plate 44 is adaptable to base structures having inclined, as well as vertical sides.

Support plates 48, with base 50 extending horizontally therefrom, are attached to legs 28. When the display assembly is mounted, base 50 rests on the top of gas pump 40 to provide additional stability. Angle brackets 42 are connected to lower frame 14 by rod 49 which extends through support plates 28 and cross member 26. Rod 49 is provided with threaded ends and nuts 51 which hold brackets 42 in place, so that the display assembly is adjustable to base structures having different widths. Adjustment of nuts 51 permits tightening of mounting plates 44 into snug engagement with the sides of the base structure to enhance the tenacity of the connection between the display assembly and the base structure. Both the mounting assemblies and support plates shown in FIG. 1 are identical in construction. Therefore, the above description applies to both and the same reference numerals have been used for common parts.

Display placard 16 is fabricated from any suitable material capable of withstanding severe weather conditions, such as light metals, plastics, plastic-coated paper board compositions and the like. The upper end of display placard 16 is installed between downwardly extending flanges 52 of fixture l8 and is releasably grasped therebetween. Preferably, flanges 52 are resilient and are adapted, in combination with fastener means 54, to apply a squeezing pressure on display placard 16 to enhance the grasping force thereon. Fastener means 54 extend through apertures provided in flanges 52 and the upper end of the display placard and are in locking engagement with the flanges. Fastener means 54 can be any suitable means capable of accomplishing this function, such as a snap-in fastener made from a resilient plastic material as shown in FIG. 3, a nut and bolt, etc. Alternately, flanges 52 can be arranged so they must be sprung apart to install a display placard thereby imposing a friction fit on the installed display placard.

Fixture 18 is swingably attached to the upper portion of legs 24 by rod'56 which extends between and is attached to legs 24. Fixture 18 is rotatably mounted on rod 56 by providing an accommodating opening 58 as shown in FIG. 3 or can be flxably attached to rod 56 or similar means which in turn is rotatably attached to legs 24.

The structural members of the display assembly are preferably fabricated from a light material, such as aluminum or a molded plastic material, to'minimize the weight of the assembly for ease of installation.

From the above detailed description of the preferred embodiments, it can be seen that the display assembly of this invention has several advantages. For example, the telescoping arrangement of the upper and lower frames provides the display assembly with the capability for accommodating display placards of varying lengths. By being free to swing, the display placards offer a minimum resistance to wind thereby reducing the vulnerability of the display assembly to wind damage. The simple arrangement of the mounting assembly and light weight construction permit quick and easy installation and removal of the display assembly from a structure to which it is mounted.

I claim:

1. A display assembly comprising 7 vertical, U-shaped lower frame having a pair of upwardly extending legs;

support means attached to said lower frame;

a vertical, inverted U-shaped upper frame having a pair of downwardly extending legs in telescopic relationship with the legs of said lower frame;

locking means associated with the legs of said lower and upper frames such that said upper frame can be adjustably raised and lowered with respect to said lower frame and selectively locked in a desired relative position;

a display placard having an upper edge;

placard holding means rigidly engaging the upper edge of said placard substantially along the entire length thereof, said placard holding means being swingably attached to the upper portion of said upper frame so that said placard is suspended in a manner to swing freely about its upper edge.

2. The display assembly according to claim 1 wherein said support means further comprises a mounting means arranged to removably mount said display assembly onto a base structure.

3. The display assembly according to claim 2 wherein said support and mounting means include at least two support plates connected to said lower frame and adapted to rest on the top of said base structure onto which said display assembly is to be mounted;

at least a pair of angle brackets each having one leg connected to respective of the legs of said lower frame;

a mounting plate adapted for engagement with the respective side of said base structure, which is pivotably attached to the other leg of each of said angle brackets; and

means for drawing said angle brackets towards each other to move said mounting plates into compressive engagement with said base structure sides.

4. The display assembly according to claim 3 including a layer of contact adhesive material on the surface of said mounting plate which engages the side of the base structure.

5. The display assembly according to claim 2 wherein the legs of said upper frame telescope inside the respective legs of said lower frame;

each of the legs of said upper frame is provided with a plurality of first apertures;

each of the legs of said lower frame is provided with at least one second aperture selectively alignable with said first apertures, as said upper frame is raised or lowered with respect to said lower frame; and

said locking means is adapted to extend between said first and second apertures to connect said upper and lower frames together at a plurality of vertical positions.

6. The display assembly according to claim 5 wherein vsaid placard holding means includes fastening means and a pair of downwardly extending, spaced flanges adapted to fit over substantially the entire length of the upper edge of said placard, said fastener means cooperating with said flanges to releasably grasp the upper edge of said placard between said flanges.

7. The display assembly according to claim 6 wherein 5 said placard holding means is rotatably mounted on a rod extending between the legs of said upper frame. 

1. A display assembly comprising vertical, U-shaped lower frame having a pair of upwardly extending legs; support means attached to said lower frame; a vertical, inverted U-shaped upper frame having a pair of downwardly extending legs in telescopic relationship with the legs of said lower frame; locking means associated with the legs of said lower and upper frames such that said upper frame can be adjustably raised and lowered with respect to said lower frame and selectively locked in a desired relative position; a display placard having an upper edge; placard holding means rigidly engaging the upper edge of said plAcard substantially along the entire length thereof, said placard holding means being swingably attached to the upper portion of said upper frame so that said placard is suspended in a manner to swing freely about its upper edge.
 1. A display assembly comprising vertical, U-shaped lower frame having a pair of upwardly extending legs; support means attached to said lower frame; a vertical, inverted U-shaped upper frame having a pair of downwardly extending legs in telescopic relationship with the legs of said lower frame; locking means associated with the legs of said lower and upper frames such that said upper frame can be adjustably raised and lowered with respect to said lower frame and selectively locked in a desired relative position; a display placard having an upper edge; placard holding means rigidly engaging the upper edge of said plAcard substantially along the entire length thereof, said placard holding means being swingably attached to the upper portion of said upper frame so that said placard is suspended in a manner to swing freely about its upper edge.
 2. The display assembly according to claim 1 wherein said support means further comprises a mounting means arranged to removably mount said display assembly onto a base structure.
 3. The display assembly according to claim 2 wherein said support and mounting means include at least two support plates connected to said lower frame and adapted to rest on the top of said base structure onto which said display assembly is to be mounted; at least a pair of angle brackets each having one leg connected to respective of the legs of said lower frame; a mounting plate adapted for engagement with the respective side of said base structure, which is pivotably attached to the other leg of each of said angle brackets; and means for drawing said angle brackets towards each other to move said mounting plates into compressive engagement with said base structure sides.
 4. The display assembly according to claim 3 including a layer of contact adhesive material on the surface of said mounting plate which engages the side of the base structure.
 5. The display assembly according to claim 2 wherein the legs of said upper frame telescope inside the respective legs of said lower frame; each of the legs of said upper frame is provided with a plurality of first apertures; each of the legs of said lower frame is provided with at least one second aperture selectively alignable with said first apertures, as said upper frame is raised or lowered with respect to said lower frame; and said locking means is adapted to extend between said first and second apertures to connect said upper and lower frames together at a plurality of vertical positions.
 6. The display assembly according to claim 5 wherein said placard holding means includes fastening means and a pair of downwardly extending, spaced flanges adapted to fit over substantially the entire length of the upper edge of said placard, said fastener means cooperating with said flanges to releasably grasp the upper edge of said placard between said flanges. 